In high demand
UND student-nurses, grads highly sought after by nation’s elite medical centers
Word is getting around.
Students of UND’s College of Nursing & Professional Disciplines (CNPD) are among the most sought after in the nation, and the best hospitals around are lining up to get UND student-nurses to perform clinical practicums within their walls.
In fact, the world-famous St. Jude’s Children’s Hospital in Memphis, Tenn., will only take students from two schools — UND and Auburn University in Alabama.
“I think it’s because of the quality of the students that we have at UND,” said Lucy Heintz, a clinical associate professor of nursing, “They’ve had such positive experiences with our students over the years that they’ve decided ‘if we’re going to have a student come here and be with us, we’re going to have it be a UND student.’
“It shows how UND students are viewed not just in North Dakota but also nationally.”
And Many UND student-nurses stay on and become part of St. Jude’s full-time nursing staff after graduation.
“When UND students first come on there … they cheer because they are so excited to see them,” said Angie Novak, a CNPD clinical placement coordinator, about St. Jude’s staff reactions.
Tough test
Heintz and Novak were among a dozen or so CNPD professors and administrators, who gathered recently, at the behest of UND Provost Tom DiLorenzo, to celebrate the last three Bachelor of Science in Nursing classes that achieved 100-percent student pass rates on the National Council Licensure Examination, or NCLEX for short.
The national pass rate for the grueling NCLEX — a mandatory test for nurses and last hurdle before licensure — is 85 percent, but UND’s overall pass rates for first-time takers have ranged between 94 and 100 percent.
It’s yet another reason why UND-educated student-nurses and grads are at the front of the recruiting line for rewarding healthcare jobs.
DiLorenzo expressed how proud he and UND President Mark Kennedy were for the testing successes of CNPD grads and the faculty members who helped make it happen.
“It is commitment to excellence — as shown in the demand for graduates of our Nursing Program — that elevates the entire University as a premier flagship,” said DiLorenzo, speaking on behalf of President Kennedy, who was traveling on business.
Strategic thinking
Building upon Goal No. 2 of the One UND Strategic Plan to increase graduation rates, the CNPD has been emphasizing success after graduation, too.
To get there, the College implemented a strategic process of its own called “Operation NCLEX.”
The CNPD revised admission criteria and developed course tests to include more NCLEX-like questions. The College also reviews practice tests with students and stresses “that graduation is an important step but true passage into the profession occurs after the NCLEX exam,” DiLorenzo said.
As a result, the College is starting to see prestigious medical centers, such as the Mayo Clinic in Rochester, Minn., recruit more of its graduates again.
Jobs waiting
Recent UND nursing grad Brittany Egeland spent weeks studying four to six hours a day for the NCLEX in hopes of becoming registered nurses. If she passed, she had a job waiting in the cardiovascular surgery and heart transplant ICU at Mayo Clinic.
“It’s very stressful,” said Egeland, a native of Grand Forks. Egeland later learned that she passed the NCLEX after answering 75 questions – the minimum number.
“I studied a lot, and reviewed what we had learned at UND,” she said. “We had learned it all.”
And even before graduation and national exams, UND student-nurses are benefiting from the revamped curricula.
Along with St. Jude’s, Seattle-based Virginia-Mason Hospital is another place that makes room for UND student-nurses. While the University of Washington, with its hugely successful nursing program, was forced to decrease the number of students it admitted because of lack of practicum space in local hospitals, one of the major hospitals in Seattle is still accepting UND student-nurses.
“Others had to cut back because they couldn’t get their students in, but we’ve got a foot in the door there,” said Stephanie Christian, chair and clinical associate professor of nursing, about UND’s strong relationship with Virginia-Mason. “It’s a testament to our students and it’s a testament to our faculty and staff.”